Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Law Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 5 of 5

Full-Text Articles in Law

Between Rogues And Liberals: Towards Value Pluralism As A Theory Of Freedom Of Religion In International Law, Peter G. Danchin Oct 2008

Between Rogues And Liberals: Towards Value Pluralism As A Theory Of Freedom Of Religion In International Law, Peter G. Danchin

Peter G. Danchin

No abstract provided.


Suspect Symbols: Value Pluralism As A Theory Of Religious Freedom In International Law, Peter G. Danchin Jun 2008

Suspect Symbols: Value Pluralism As A Theory Of Religious Freedom In International Law, Peter G. Danchin

Peter G. Danchin

The grounds upon which states may limit the freedom to manifest religion or belief are divisive questions in constitutional and international law. The focus of recent inquiry has been on laws which proscribe the wearing of religious symbols in certain aspects of the public sphere, and on the claims more generally to religious and cultural freedom of Muslim minorities in European nation-states. Stepping back from these debates, this Article aims at a more rigorous theoretical treatment of the subject. It asks whether there is a coherent notion of religious freedom in international legal theory and, if not, why not? In …


Of Prophets And Proselytes: Freedom Of Religion And The Conflict Of Rights In International Law, Peter G. Danchin Jun 2008

Of Prophets And Proselytes: Freedom Of Religion And The Conflict Of Rights In International Law, Peter G. Danchin

Peter G. Danchin

The case of proselytism presents a tangle of competing claims: on the one hand, the rights of proselytizers to free exercise of religion and freedom of speech; on the other hand, the rights of targets of proselytism to change their religion, peacefully to have or maintain a particular religious tradition, and to be free from injury to religious feelings. Clashes between these claims of right are today generating acute tensions in relations between States and peoples, a state of affairs starkly illustrated by the recent Danish cartoons controversy. Irrespective of their resolution in any particular domestic legal system, how should …


U.S. Unilateralism And The International Protection Of Religious Freedom: The Multilateral Alternative, Peter G. Danchin Jun 2008

U.S. Unilateralism And The International Protection Of Religious Freedom: The Multilateral Alternative, Peter G. Danchin

Peter G. Danchin

This article considers the tension in U.S. foreign policy between unilateral and multilateral approaches to the promotion and protection of religious freedom. In particular, it analyzes the recently enacted International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 that seeks to enforce international human rights norms through the imposition of unilateral sanctions on foreign countries that deny religious freedom and persecute religious groups. The Article suggests that this approach stands in an uneasy relationship with existing international and regional human rights regimes and institutions. It argues that as an instrument of foreign policy, the Act is vulnerable to politicization and abuse of the …


Beyond Rationalism And Instrumentalism: The Case For Rethinking U.S. Engagement With International Law And Organization, Peter G. Danchin Jun 2008

Beyond Rationalism And Instrumentalism: The Case For Rethinking U.S. Engagement With International Law And Organization, Peter G. Danchin

Peter G. Danchin

This Essay advances an argument for rethinking the current terms of engagement of U.S. foreign policy with international law and institutions so as to avoid the current two extremes of power politics and imperial moralizing. First, it is necessary to distinguish between force and the status of political domination on the one hand, and consensus and the status of normative meaning on the other. While it may be possible for a superpower to exercise factual authority and control over foreign states and peoples through sheer assertions of force and will, the attainability of such a situation should not be confused …